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current price of a new M8 shutter?

i was one of the lucky ones who had an M8 that seemed to be fixable by taking the battery out when i mistakenly turned to Continuous whilst in Discreet.

until a fairly spectacular fall, on my way to catch the last lighting up of the Eiffel Tower as a resident in Paris... it didn't matter that i had walked that path a thousand times, i missed the step in the emotion of the moment.

after a nice little cry assessing my physical damages, i tried the camera and it worked fine... but then, i did the dreaded: i mistakenly switched it onto Continuous.

Err in the viewfinder window, Shutter Fault on the screen.

i never upgraded my camera to the silent shutter, despite it being an important factor to me and the fact that i always shoot in Discreet, because i am saving for an M9. so no, no warranty.

does anyone know what Leica charges to fix a regular shutter?

i refuse to pay 1200 to get the silent one and am, unfortunately, out of Paris and my normal support (i suspect my M8 may be a secret snob and decided to boycott the move).

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

i do hope that is the case!

my M8 has been pretty flawless -- perfect alignment, no sensor issues, etc., so i thought i got a brute of a camera (with the loudest shutter i've ever heard on an M8).

i will take it to the local dealer here and cross my fingers... i don't expect to get in back in time, unfortunately, for the Gentse Festival where i expected to use it a ton... ah well, at least i have the Epson to fall back on -- always a joy to use.

yes, if you're talking about the camera freezing... and, no, not necessarily, if you're talking about the camera not working any more. for most people who had this happen, it already happened. at least i think... there were a lot (or so it seemed -- they were vocal) where it happened at the very beginning.

but could it be a cumulative thing, depending on the strength of the shutter???

i've shot in "discreet" from the time it was available and was always able to revive my camera. in the beginning, i was able to revive it by simply turning it off if i accidently switched it to "continuous" in the heat of the moment. soon thereafter, i started needing to take the battery in and out to revive it. more recently, i had to count to five whilst removing the battery -- in other words, take it out and keep it out.

this really began to annoy me as i started missing shots! the only time this mistake happened was when i was turning it on too quickly, excited by a shot i saw... i kept on trying to come up with a good jerry-rig (that wouldn't deface the camera) to stop this from happening (more often as the on/off switch became looser). i was relieved that Leica were coming up with an update...

obviously too soon...

there are quite a few M8's out here that seem to be working fine. people have made sure that they have different settings and turn off "discreet" to use the "continuous" mode (i never bothered because i don't use it). i also think they are probably slower and more deliberate shooters than i am.

i'd never thought that it may be a tolerance issue until you asked your question -- so thank you very much! evidence shows that it may be... perhaps i wore out the shutter by doing it one too many times?

it is obviously a big enough issue that Leica felt they needed to address the issue (finally!) so it may be that more and more cameras are now being sent it?

whatever. try to be careful in the meanwhile it sounds like the firmware update should be out shortly

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

Cam: Sometimes, not always but sometimes, these shutter faults can be resolved by removing the battery, turning the camera on, and leaving it on for a day or two with the battery out of the camera.

This lets the internal backup battery drain and effectively reboots the camera. If the shutter fault is really a twiddled bit, then the bit gets untwiddled, and voila. Since you've had this issue before, and were able to solve it by removing the battery, it's worth a try. As my ancestors used to say, "it couldn't hurt."

OTOH, if a piece of the shutter has been physically placed where it oughtn't to be, then it's time for a visit to the friendly repairman.

I like discrete mode, but I only use it when I truly need it (concerts and other quiet places), to avoid making the continuous mode mistake.

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

thank you! i did the battery out (and reinstalled firmware) but didn't know i was supposed to turn the camera on -- duh! (i've turned it on now )

i'm really embarrassed to admit this as well -- what exactly am i supposed to see when i look into the camera? it looks like this one. is that what i should be seeing?

(you can tell how often i bother to look at the mechanics...)

it's odd about discreet.... i know i should only use it when i need it (which, honestly, is most of the time), but i've gotten so used to it that it somehow feels wrong when i don't have it on... i also think using discreet helps with shutter shake -- an issue for me still with my elbow injury and all.

and i keep on waiting for the re-cock sound on my Epson after the shot (even as i am manually doing it), lol! actually, the shutter on my R-D1 that was replaced last year is quieter than the Leica which amuses me to no end. i never thought i'd see the Epson as discreet!

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

Cam: The picture looks fine, with the gray stripe in the middle, so your shutter is probably not stuck open. The question is whether something internal has broken, or been moved out of place in such a way that it can't recover without help from the repair person.

Leaving the camera on with the battery removed drains the internal (recharchagle) backup battery, and eventually, the circuits in camera totally shut down. You have to leave it on with the main battery for, I believe, about 48 hours. Then, when you put the main battery back, the camera starts up again, hopefully, "rebooted."

I've never (touch wood) had a shutter fault. I have had the shutter lock open while I was cleaning the sensor. Removing the battery briefly always took care of that.

Yes, the M8 shutter is noisier than we'd like. I shot a party last weekend, and several people immediately turned my way when I clicked the shutter. That probably wouldn't happen with a film Leica.

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

well, the shutter still seems to be... well, not a shutter.

have no idea if it rebooted or not

i got an email from a friend that said it cost him 330 and about a 45 day turnaround when this happened to him, so... i guess i can hope that they'll try to fix it sooner, by the end of July, before everyone hoes on holiday. and the price, if they charge me the same, is more acceptable... sigh.

off to take off my magnifier, put on the body cap, and take my baby down to the store. crossing my fingers that his english is better than my flemish!

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

Originally Posted by ashrafazlan

Last time I sent mine it cost me 660 and took 3 months. Of course, that was for a circuit board replacement.

arggggggghhhhhh!!!

*that* for an original shutter (not even the silent one) wouldn't be acceptable to me. seriously. and it would make me think long and heard before i got an M9.... i might be able to afford it down the road, but could i afford the upkeep?

i was informed at the store that July (or the last two weeks, at least) was when Solms was minimally staffed (their holiday)... and the camera needs to go to Leica Belgium headquarters first, sigh. they are trying to put a rush on it which means i *may* get it by the beginning of August. (which, considering the circumstances, i could only be thrilled with.)

on the plus side, the owner, Jacques (Foto Verstraeten), could not be more lovely (he knows his stuff and has a true love of old rangefinders and glass).

Originally Posted by KurtKamka

Sorry to hear about your bad luck, Cam ... right during the middle of summer too.

thank you, Kurt! it wouldn't hurt so much but this past winter was brutal AND everywhere i look there's legs legs legs! it's killing me...

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

Oh Cam, I feel your pain. I keep putting off sending my M8 off to have the dreaded vertical line problem fixed. And I've been shooting film Ms!

Say, there's an idea! Get yourself an M2, M4-2 or an M4-P (they seem to be the least expensive bodies out there right now) and start shooting some film! They're small, and discreet and would be easy for you to handle with your arm injury. I absolutely love shooting with my M2 and M4-P and you can't argue with the results! Scanned film shots are most of my Flickr stream right now.

Re: current price of a new M8 shutter?

Maggie,

thank you, sweetie!

i have my Epson *and* an M2 so i am not rangefinderless... (i probably should have gotten an M3 for the window -- preferable for fast lenses -- but, oh well.)

i had been looking forward to going a little crazy during the festival here, experimenting and taking pics up the wazoo, but i'll have to be more conservative now. c'est la vie... i'll still be able to find my voice, i'm sure. plus, both the R-D1 and the M2 are faster than the M8 which is a joy!

you'll love that my guy here knows Tom A. and his wife and thinks they're the best -- small world, huh?